Reflections
by TomiKitteh13
Summary: What do you see when you look in the mirror? Do you see yourself or your family? What does that mean to you? What if you found someone who made you see yourself as everyone else sees you? What would that be like? A Mass Effect Fanfic with three Shepards. M!Shep/Kaidan, F!Shep/Liara, & CockyM!Shep
1. Prologue

Author's Note:

Hello everyone! ^-^ This is my very first fanfic under the genius that is Mass Effect. Word of note, this is a WIP, so please be patient as I update. I'll try to shoot for a chapter every few weeks. If I'm lucky I'll update sooner than that. I'll try to shoot for Fridays as update day. Other than that, please enjoy and leave me comments to let me know what you think!

~ TomiKitteh

* * *

_**PROLOGUE**_

There was something to be said about the concept of synergy. Ethan Shepard knew it first hand from working with his siblings. And right now it was working beautifully.

Another volley of bullets whizzed near his head, causing his shields to crackle as he dove for cover. He quickly recovered, leaning against the barricade, watching as his sister overloaded the shields of the opponent that had tried to take him out. The smile that had crept on his face vanished quickly when he saw three enemies converging just behind Emily. The electric thrill of his biotics kicked in as he sent them flying into the air, where they floated helplessly. A few seconds later each of them fell to the ground as his older brother, Elliot, took them out with precise shots from his assault rifle.

Taking the small reprieve, he took a few steadying breaths. His brother and sister came over to him, making sure he was alright.

"I didn't even see them, but thanks for that," Emily said a smile gracing her delicate features.

"Any time, sis," Ethan said, smiling in return. Turning his gaze to Elliot, "You're getting better with your shots, bro."

Elliot raised a dark eyebrow in skepticism, "Better? I've always been a good shot. The best in fact and you know it, Ethan."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

"Laugh it up, little brother," Elliot intoned. And while most wouldn't have heard the edge of laughter in his tone, Ethan caught it and playfully punched his brother in the shoulder. Ethan shook his head and took a few seconds to check his pistol. His thermal clip was about half full and he wasn't sure how much longer they could keep this up.

Suddenly, Elliot's body went rigid. "Better brace yourselves. We've got six converging on our location. Two to the left, two the right, and two in front."

"I'll take the ones on the left," Emily said, her soft soprano ringing out almost too loud for the silence that encompassed them.

"I got the ones on the right. Ethan, you take point."

"As always." Ethan looked up from where he was crouched and took in the enemies coming towards them. A second later, he nodded to his siblings and they broke into action. Emily quickly sent off an overload that destroyed the shields of one of the two on the left, before hitting the second one with a neural shock. Seconds later she was shooting them down. Elliot took out the two on the right in quick succession, firing off two shots almost immediately. All that was left for Ethan to take care of the two in the front. And he was ready.

A smile came to his face as he activated his biotics. The electric tingle encompassed him as he threw one of them almost fifty feet while simultaneously lifting the other one into the air. A second later he hit the enemy with a warp and watched, almost smugly, as the enemy fell the ground with a thud.

As soon as that last enemy hit the ground the entire area flickered out, leaving only a barren simulation field. Ethan breathed an audible sigh and quickly shucked off his helmet, turning to see his siblings doing the same.

"Great job, guys," he said as he walked over to them.

"I knew we could do it," Emily said, playfully shoving Ethan.

"Right? How many times did I have to save your ass?" Elliot said, a mockingly skeptical look on his face.

"Oh, shut up, you!" Emily said. A second later she grabbed his assault rifle from him and began to run around the empty room, laughing loudly as Elliot chased after her, swearing and laughing. Ethan just stood there smiling and laughing himself at the way his siblings acted.

He still found himself amazed at how much they got along, especially considering that they were nothing alike, yet somehow that helped them in getting along.

Elliot was the cocky, slightly roguish older triplet with crew-cut, jet-black hair and dark blue eyes. He was the tallest standing at 6 foot 5 and muscled like a champion weight lifter.

Emily was the loud-mouthed, easy-going middle triplet with chin-length, fiery-red hair and bright green eyes. She was of medium height, roughly 5 foot 9, with a slender, curvy figure and lithe muscle covering her graceful form.

Ethan was the youngest triplet, soft-spoken, quiet, with short, dark blonde hair and pale gray eyes. He was the shortest of the three, standing at 5 foot 6 and muscled like a swimmer with a penchant to smile modestly or in most social circumstances.

A laugh erupted from Ethan's chest as Elliot finally managed to grab hold of Emily, swinging her into the air, spinning her in a circle; her surprise made her drop the gun and she giggled freely, yelling, "Put me down you asshole!"

"Not a chance little sister!" Elliot's voice echoed around the room.

Shaking his head, stifling his laughter, Ethan yelled, "Alright you two, come on! We don't want to be late for dinner with mom." He picked up his helmet from where it had fallen and jogged towards the exit. A few seconds later he could hear his siblings following, still laughing and shoving one another.

After washing up and changing into their civvies, the Shepard triplets entered their mother's apartment to the welcome scent of frying steak and the sound of Hannah Shepard's laughter. Walking into the kitchen, Ethan caught sight of Captain Anderson and his mother. She had a glow about her that he hadn't seen in a while. He smiled softly to himself and then went to give her a hug, wrapping his arms around her and placing a kiss on her cheek.

"Oh, Ethan!" She turned and hugged him back just as warmly, her dark green eyes sparkling. A second later, Ethan felt his siblings join and he felt as if he were going to pass out from the group hug.

"Did you enjoy yourselves?" Hannah asked as soon as they separated and they'd taken their seats at the table.

"As always," Elliot voiced, a cocky smile on his face.

"Of course you did," Emily said, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Watch it, sis," he said with a mock glare.

"You guys, quit it." Ethan got up to help his mother in finish dinner. While he got out the makings for a salad, he asked her, "So, when did Anderson show up?"

"Oh, about twenty minutes ago. He has something to discuss with all of you, which I said was perfectly acceptable, only if he stayed for dinner."

"Uh huh. And is that all?" Ethan knew is mother better than anyone and was the closest to her out her three children. He glanced at her, giving her a look as she blushed.

"Well, it doesn't hurt that he's a handsome man."

"I thought so," he said with a smile. Finishing the salad he said, "I'll take this to table. Do you want me to open a bottle of wine?"

"I don't see why not, I'm almost finished here, go ahead."

Setting the salad at the table, he quickly fetched a bottle of their best wine. It was a dark red wine with a robust flavor and sweet aftertaste. He knew everyone would enjoy it. "Hey, Emily, could you grab a few wine glasses while I open this?"

"Sure!" She quickly grabbed them and set them at each place setting.

"I don't need one of those," Elliot said. Ethan noticed the look Emily gave their older brother and she just shook her head with a smile. "Fine, go get your beer then."

The cork on the wine bottle finally popped, just as Elliot came back to the table, swigging from his open beer bottle. That was so like him, steak and beer. Ethan sometimes thought that his older brother was born into the wrong family. He quickly poured each glass full and then sat down just as their mother brought out the platter of steaks.

After everyone had served themselves some food and conversation and laughter had been going for quite some time, Anderson finally spoke up.

"There's something I wanted to discuss with the three of you."

At once three pairs of eyes zoned in on him.

"You all know about the newest Alliance vessel, correct?"

All three siblings nodded. They'd learned of the vessel just a few days ago and was wondering about it. All they knew was that it had been a joint effort between the Turian Hierarchy and the Alliance.

"Well, the shakedown mission is planned for next week. I was wondering if you three would like to join the crew?"

Blinking rapidly, Ethan cast a glance at his siblings. Emily was just staring at Anderson, with a curious look on her face. Elliot had a huge grin on his face. "Was wondering when you were gonna ask us, Anderson!"

The older man smirked at that and looked to Emily and then finally Ethan.

"How do you two feel? You up for it?"

"Well, it's been a while since I've been on a ship, sure," Emily said, her tone excited.

Ethan wasn't sure what he thought. While he didn't not want to go, he was worried about it. He didn't want to leave his mother all alone. He bit his lip uncertain, his brow furrowing with worry. Then he felt a soft hand take hold of his and he turned his gaze up from the table and looked into his mother's face. "I'll be fine, honey. I promise."

Smiling softly he squeezed her hand and looked towards the other three at the table.

"I'll do it."

"Great!" Anderson said, beaming.

Ethan picked up his wine glass and took a drink from it. While he was still worrying about leaving their mother all alone, he couldn't deny that he was a bit excited. After all it the newest vessel in the Alliance fleet.

"So, where's the shakedown run heading?" Elliot asked as he took a swig from his beer. Emily munched on some salad, her eyes trained on Anderson's face.

"Eden Prime."

Ethan felt a wide smile come to his face. Now the deal had just gotten better. After all it wasn't everyday one got to see the crowning jewel of Alliance territory.


	2. Chapter One: Gone Wrong

_**CHAPTER ONE**_ ~ _Gone Wrong_

To say that the SSV Normandy SR-1 was small was a far shot from what the ship really was. It was a prototype "deep scout" frigate, co-developed by the Alliance and the Turian Hierarchy with the sponsorship of the Citadel Council. She was optimized for solo reconnaissance missions deep within unstable regions, using state-of-the-art stealth technology powered by an experimental drive core.

Ethan stood on the bridge, just behind the pilot. He still couldn't imagine his surprise at finding out just who the pilot was. Jeff "Joker" Moreau. While they hadn't been in the same classes during their academy years, he had met the young man during his time there, finding that he enjoyed his sense of self and his humor. Jeff was probably the only person who'd gotten Ethan to smile the entire time at the academy, other than his sister and brother.

Yet, Ethan was having a bit of a problem. Had been having a bit of a problem since coming aboard the vessel. And that problem had a name.

Kaidan Alenko.

Ethan felt his cheeks flush just from the thought of the man, hoping his blushing wasn't too obvious. Hell, the man just happened to be sitting next to Joker in the co-pilot's seat! But he couldn't help it if he'd felt an immediate attraction to the officer the moment he laid eyes on the older man's handsome face and well toned, muscular body. Not to mention his eyes which were like twin pools of liquid amber and the dark, nearly obsidian black, locks that were swept off his face.

Suppressing the urge to groan, Ethan quickly averted his gaze from the dark head just to Joker's right and took in the Turian standing silently next to him. His name was Nihlus and he was a Spectre. So far Ethan hadn't spoken more than two words with him. To be honest the Turian scared the hell out of him. He seemed all cool and collected, but there was something about him that had the hairs on the back of Ethan's neck standing on end.

While he was still excited over getting to see Eden Prime, a part of him hoped the mission would end soon, if only to get away from the Spectre.

It was then that Ethan felt the presence of his brother. Turning he looked at Elliot. Elliot wore his N7 armor, just as Ethan himself did, but at the moment he was all hard lines and tense. Something about it struck him as slightly odd. He didn't have a chance to contemplate that train of thought as he heard Joker say, "Drift, just under 1,500 K." Apparently he was too wrapped up in his inner thoughts. Mentally shaking his head, he heard Nihlus reply, "1,500 is good. Your captain will be pleased."

After the turian walked off, he heard Joker quip, "I hate that guy."

And then his mind when to crap when Lieutenant Alenko responded in his velvety voice, "Nihlus gave you compliment, so you hate him?"

Ethan didn't care one bit to what was said next, his eyes trained on the Lieutenant. Oh, he had it bad. He had it real bad. And there was just something so sexy about the older man's accent. Apparently Ethan had a thing for Canadian accents.

It wasn't until Elliot nudged him that Ethan found he'd missed an important update. Blushing intently, realizing that Alenko was staring at him, his warm brown eyes gazing at him with an almost sympathetic look.

"Come on, the captain's waiting for us." Ethan just blinked, watching his brother walk off. A second later he gained control of himself and followed after. On the way, he and Elliot stopped to converse with Navigator Pressly for a moment before hitting up Corporal Jenkins and Doctor Chakwas for some quick information regarding Eden Prime, Spectres, and Nihlus. Ethan was glad to know he wasn't the only one who hadn't spoken much to the Spectre.

After that he and Elliot entered the comm room to find Emily and Nihlus already conversing. Just as Ethan was thinking that Nihlus knew something they didn't, Anderson came in.

"I think it's time we told the Commanders what's really going on."

That had the hair on the back of Ethan's neck raising, his body beginning to sweat a little. The crew had been whispering. And Pressly had found it strange that they had full crew on board when a skeleton crew would have sufficed for such a routine run.

"This is more than a simple shakedown run."

Somehow it didn't suprise him. Ethan was about to speak up when Elliot beat him to it.

"I'm assuming there's a reason you didn't tell us, Captain?"

"This comes down from Alliance brass, on a need to know basis."

"Oh, that's just great, leave us in the dark!" Emily quipped and Ethan shot her a wide-eyed look that told her to shut up. She at least had the grace to look humble.

"A science team on Eden Prime unearthed some kind of Prothean beacon. We've been ordered to retrieve it and bring it back to the Citadel for further study."

Ethan's brow furrowed. "I thought the Protheans vanished 50,000 years ago, sir?"

"Yes, but their legacy still remains," Nihlus responded, going on to talk about the mass relays, ship drives, and the Citadel itself. Ethan could only nod at the end of it all.

"I see, Captain." Elliot had that hard-edged look on his face. Ethan knew his brother was unhappy with how this had been handled, he really didn't like being kept in the dark any more than Emily.

"The beacon's not the only reason I'm here."

Anderson nodded and looked directly at Ethan. Ethan blinked, taken by surprise. What the hell was that supposed to mean?

"Nihlus is here to study you, Commander."

"Hmfph..." Elliot said a frown on his face, his eyes narrowed at Ethan.

"Wait, he's here for Ethan? Why?"

"I've read the reports of Akuze. He showed great bravery and a will to survive, both qualities that are looked for with Spectre candidates."

Ethan felt his eyes grow wide and frown come to his face. While everyone knew of what he'd gone through on Akuze, he'd always thought that it would have been Elliot or Emily who'd be selected as a candidate. After all Elliot had proven himself to get the job done, no matter the cost. Emily was a war hero, everyone knew what she'd done for Elysium.

"I... I..." Ethan couldn't seem to find the words to express himself. His thoughts were crashing around in his head and he felt ready to faint. Elliot's voice cut through the static in his head and Ethan could only stare at his brother with a shocked look.

"He'll be a good candidate. But what I can't understand is why a Turian would want a human to be part of the Spectres."

Nihlus narrowed his eyes at Elliot and all Ethan heard was, "I don't care that he's human. I can see what humanity has to offer the Spectres. I need to see his skills for myself. Eden Prime will be the first of several missions together."

"You'll be in charge of the ground team. Secure the beacon and get it onto the ship ASAP. Nihlus will accompany you to observe the mission."

Ethan looked at everyone for a moment. Elliot didn't look particularily happy, but at least he had a proud look on his face. Emily had a big shit-eating grin on her face, so Ethan knew exactly what she was thinking. He finally looked to Anderson and said, "Just give the word, Captian."

"We should be getting close to Eden-"

"Captain! We've got a problem."

"What's wrong, Joker?"

"Transmission from Eden Prime, sir. You better see this!"

Ethan noticed Anderson's eyes narrow before answering, "Bring it up on screen."

What followed was a rather alarming surveillance vid. Fighting, gun shots, soldiers being taken down one by one, a rather large ship, and a noise that made Ethan's ears throb sharply with its intensity.

After it was over Joker gave a short run down and Anderson gave them their orders. Ethan was to get Lieutenant Alenko and Corporal Jenkins ready to drop and while he was nervous, he knew he'd do fine. This wasn't his first rodeo.

He knew he was lying down. His body felt as if it had gone ten rounds with a Krogan and lost, badly. His mind throbbed intently and images flashed before his closed eyelids; synthetics, war, a species on the verge of annihilation. Groaning, he opened his eyes slowly, letting his eyes get adjusted to the bright lights of the medical bay.

He carefully eased himself up into a sitting position and looked around slowly. He could see Doctor Chakwas going over a data pad in front of him, his sister off to the side standing next to a brunette woman. Elliot was there too and he had a very worried and angry look on his face. Ethan caught on to the fact that his brother kept shooting daggers at the brunette woman. But before he could even begin to go down that thought a voice broke through the silence of the medical bay.

"Doctor? Doctor Chakwas? I think he's waking up."

Ethan felt surprise take over at the sound of Kaidan's voice. And his head was swimming as he felt a goofy smile come over his face. And before he could regain himself, he was wrapped in a hug so tight Ethan thought he was going to pass out again. Yet, he'd know that hug anywhere.

"Emily... I... Can't... Breathe..." Ethan gasped out with a slight chuckle.

"Sorry! You just... You scared the shit out of us Ethan!"

"Yes, well, I need to talk to him first, Commander. Then you can squeeze the life out of him," Chakwas intoned, her voice gentle, yet stern.

"Right. Sorry, Doctor." Emily moved off to the side, standing next to the other woman. Ashley Williams, Ethan remembered just then. Of the 212.

"You had us worried there, Ethan. How are you feeling?"

At that he really took stock of how he felt. His body wasn't in as much pain now that he was awake. But his head still throbbed, but not terribly.

"Minor throbbing, nothing serious. How long was I out?"

"About fifteen hours. Something happened down there with the beacon, I think."

It was then that the brunette woman spoke up. Ashley, Ethan remembered. He cast a sideways glance at her.

"It's my fault. I must have triggered a security field when I approached it. You had to push me out of the way."

At that Ethan's memory flashed back to Eden Prime. Jenkins dying, Geth, word of a second turian, named Saren. The beacon glowing a bright, sickly shade of green. Him floating, paralysed. Then darkness. Nothing until he awoke here. Except for the images that had assualted his psyche.

"You had no way of knowing what would happen."

Ashley smiled at him softly, her features becoming softer. He had to admit she was pretty. Not as pretty as Emily, but he thought she wouldn't have any trouble finding a man.

"Actually, we don't even know if that's what set it off," Chakwas said, bringing Ethan out of his thoughts. "Unfortunately, we'll never get the chance to find out."

This time it was Kaidan who spoke up and Ethan felt a shiver run down his spine at the sound of the man's voice. "The beacon exploded. A system overload, maybe. The blast knocked you cold. The Chief and I carried you back here to the ship."

Ethan looked into those amber brown eyes and said, "I appreciate it."

"Physically, you're fine. But I detected some unusual brain activity, abnormal beta waves," Chakwas continued, as Ethan sat back on the biobed, trying to get as comfortable as possible. "I also noticed an increase in your rapid eye movement, signs typically associated with intense dreaming."

At this, Ethan looked down at his hands for a moment. He wasn't sure how to answer, but he figured he try anyway.

"I saw... I'm not sure what I saw. Death. Destruction. Nothing's really clear."

"Hmm... I better add this to my report. It may- Oh, Captain Anderson."

Ethan's head shot up and he looked to where everyone else was staring. Anderson had entered the medical bay and looked a little worried, yet there was something about him Ethan couldn't place his finger on.

"How's the Commander holding up?"

"All the readings look normal. I'd say the Commander's going to be fine."

"Glad to hear it." At this Anderson looked to everyone else in the room and said, "I need to speak with the Commanders - in private."

"Aye, aye Captain. Williams and I will be in the mess if you need us."

Ethan watched as Chakwas, Kaidan, and Ashley left. Once the door shut behind them, Emily and Elliot flanked Ethan, all three staring at Anderson.

"Sounds like that beacon hit you pretty hard, Commander. You sure you're okay?"

What followed next was a quick conversation concerning Jenkins, the Geth, and Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams. While he knew he couldn't have prevented it, Ethan didn't like loosing people under his command. Emily voiced her concern over the Geth, making a snappy comment about intel dropping the ball. Anderson just leveled her with a hard look which shut her up immediately. Elliot on the other hand was more interested in why Williams had been assigned to the Normandy. He even popped off about how he didn't want her on his ship.

"This is my ship and I wanted her here. She's a good soldier."

Nobody dared question him about his decision after that. While Ethan loved his siblings, he couldn't understand their tendencies to be rude and disrespectful sometimes.

After that it got pretty intensive. With Nihlus dead, the beacon destroyed, and Geth invading everyone knew the Council would want answers.

"He's got nothing to hide, Captain. Surely the Council will see that," Emily spoke up, wrapping an arm around Ethan's shoulders. He smiled softly at her for a second appreciating the comfort and support.

Anderson voiced his support and then the real reason for the meeting was clear. The turian named Saren. Anderson surmised that if he'd allied himself with the Geth, then he'd gone rogue. Then the icing on the cake came when Anderson stated: "And he hates humans."

Ethan felt his mouth fall open. Elliot was the one to voice the question that was rattling around inside his head.

"Why?"

"He thinks we're growing to fast, taking over the galaxy. A lot of aliens think that way. Most of them don't do anything about it."

Anderson kept going, saying that he wasn't sure why Saren had allied with the Geth, but had a feeling it had something to do with the beacon. Which then brought them back to Ethan's vision. Anderson wanted to know if he'd seen anything or gotten any clues as to why.

Ethan looked to him and said, "Just before I lost consciousness, I had some kind of vision."

"A vision? Of what?"

"I saw synthetics. Geth, maybe. Slaughtering people, butchering them."

Anderson mentioned telling the Council. Ethan couldn't stop the laugh that came out.

"What am I supposed to tell them? That I had a bad dream?"

"We don't know what information was stored in that beacon. Whatever it was, Saren took it." And from there Anderson went on say, once again, that Saren hated humanity and that the attack on Eden Prime was an act of war. Saren had the secrets from the beacon, an army of Geth behind him, and he wouldn't stop until he'd wiped humanity from the face of the galaxy.

It was then that Elliot spoke up, his voice hard and biting, "We'll find some way to take him down."

Anderson shook his head. "It's not that easy. He's a Spectre. He can go anywhere, do almost anything. That's why we need the Council on our side."

"We prove Saren's gone rogue and the Council will revoke his Spectre status," Emily voiced. Ethan caught the glint of excitement in her eyes. This could only end well. But he had to agree. That would be the safest plan of action.

"I'll contact the ambassador, see if he can get us an audience with the Council. He'll want to see us as soon as we reach the Citadel anyway."

"Sounds like a plan, sir." Emily said a smile coming to her face.

Ethan just shivered a bit, all of this was a bit much, especially considering he'd only woken up a few moments ago. But then Anderson mentioned how they were getting close and he wanted them to head up to the bridge to tell Joker to bring them into dock.

All three of them nodded and with that the four left the medical bay. Just outside Ethan noticed Ashley waiting by the crew's mess table. He sighed. While she seemed nice enough, he didn't like the look she was giving him. "I'm gonna head up to see Joker."

With that he left his siblings. Walking past Ashley, he didn't bother to stop to listen to her. He just wanted to get this all over with. As soon as he rounded the corner, about to head towards the stairs, he nearly bumped into Kaidan.

Looking up, blushing slightly, he said, "Sorry, Lieutenant. I didn't see you there."

Kaidan smiled warmly at him and said, "Don't worry about it, Commander. Are you heading up to see Joker?"

"Anderson wants me to tell him to bring us into dock."

"Bet the Council's gonna want to hear about this mission, especially given the death of one of their Spectres. They'll probably try to squeeze more concessions out of the Alliance for this anyway."

At that Ethan looked at the older man and said, "You sound like you have a good grasp of the situation. You a career man?"

"Most biotics are, yes. And it made my old man happy when I enlisted, eventually." They were walking up the stairs, heading towards the CIC, when Kaidan asked his next question, "Is that why you're here?"

Smiling, Ethan responded, "My parents were with the Alliance. We traveled from ship to ship growing up. It only made sense to follow in their footsteps when we all turned eighteen."

They continued talking until Navigator Pressly called Kaidan over, saying that looking Jenkins was hard enough on the crew and that he was glad they hadn't lost Ethan as well. Ethan smiled and nodded, but continued towards the bridge. Joker no doubt would have a quip for him about the Citadel once they got into range. Ethan smiled and chuckled a bit, feeling a bit of stress leave him at the thought.


	3. Chapter Two: The Council

_**CHAPTER TWO**_ ~ _The Council_

Ethan leaned against the balcony railing of Ambassador Udina's office, sandwiched between Kaidan and Ashley and only a few steps away from Elliot and Emily. He was half-listening to what was being said, letting his gray gaze drift over the view of the Citadel that was before him.

Ambassador Udina was raging at the Council and they were just taking it in stride with their slight condescending attitude. And while he wasn't normally one to get angry, unlike Udina, he just wished for once that the Council would open their eyes and see what humanity had to offer.

"Citadel Security is investigating your charges against Saren. We will discuss the C-Sec findings at the hearing. Not before," the Asari Councilor intoned just before they ended the comm link.

Ethan wished he didn't have to be here for all this. He quietly wondered if it would be a bad thing to just jump over the balcony and disappear. He seriously was questioning it when he felt a nudge. Turning, he caught site of Elliot flicking his head towards Udina, who was just turning around, addressing Captain Anderson. Stifling the urge to sigh, Ethan joined in the conversation.

"I see you've brought half your crew with you."

"Just the ground team from Eden Prime. In case you had any questions."

"I have the mission reports. I assume they're accurate?"

Anderson nodded and the said, "Sounds like you convinced the Council to give us an audience."

Udina's face became a scowl and Ethan seriously wanted to go running off the balcony. He didn't like politicans one bit and wasn't feel very confident about how the meeting with the Council would go.

"They were not happy about it. Saren's their top agent. They don't like him being accused of treason."

"Saren's a threat to every human colony out there," Elliot spoke up, his voice sharp as a razor. "He needs to be stopped."

"The Council has to listen to us!" Emily said, her voice just a touch too loud. Ethan resisted wincing at how loud his sister's plea had been. She'd sounded almost desparate.

Almost.

"Settle down Commanders. Your brother has done enough to jeopardize his candidacy for the Spectres." Which then Udina leveled Ethan with a withering look and continued, this time talking directly to him. "The mission on Eden Prime was a chance to prove you could get the job done. Instead, Nihlus ended up dead and the beacon was destroyed!" Udina's voice had gotten progressively louder with each word. By the end Ethan couldn't help the instinctual cringe that hit him. He didn't like when people yelled at him.

"That's Saren's fault, not his!" Elliot yelled at Udina, taking a few steps towards the Ambassador, his hands clenched so hard his knuckles were white. Emily had moved fractionally closer to Ethan and while he didn't approve of Elliot's reaction or Emily's death glare, he did find it amazing that they were willing to stand up for him and protect him. Even if it meant having the wrath of an Ambassador come down on them.

"Then we better hope the C-Sec investigation turns up evidence to support our accusations. Otherwise the Council might use this as an excuse to keep Ethan out of the Spectres." Udina said, putting his hands behind his back and gazing haughtly back at Elliot before looking to Anderson.

"Come with me, Captain. I want to go over a few things before the hearing."

Looking at the the rest of them, Udina finally said, "You can meet us at the Citadel Tower. Top level. I'll make sure you have clearance to get in." With that he turned and walked out, Anderson following closing on his heels.

Ethan finally let out the breath he'd been holding, his body relaxing minutely. Emily squeezed his arm and smiled reassuringly at him. Elliot just paced back and forth, his face set in a hard gaze, his fists still clenched.

Ashley and Kaidan came over to Ethan and Emily. Ashley shook her head and said, "And that's why I hate politicans." She smiled at Ethan and he felt as if her gaze was looking right through his armor. He ignored the urge to shiver and instead smiled back as politely as possible.

"Why does he have to be such a fucking bastard!" Elliot yelled, slamming his fist into the wall, swearing even harder a second later. Ethan blinked in surprise, his mouth hanging open slightly, while Emily huffed a sigh and went to check his hand. "You really know better, Elliot. Seriously." After checking over his hand, she said, "It isn't broken. But it'll smart for a while."

"Doesn't matter. I'm just pissed off. This whole situation is hopeless. The Council will never listen to us."

"You don't know that. C-Sec might turn up something against Saren," Kaidan said at last, coming to stand closer to Ethan, their arms brushing slightly. Ethan felt his pulse quicken and his cheeks flush. Then he mentally kicked himself. He was standing in plain sight, in the Ambassador's office on the Presidium. Seriously he needed to get a hold of himself.

"Yeah, well, we should be heading up anyway. Come on," he said, walking off towards the door. On the way over he just evened out his breathing and got his damn hormones under control.

He could hear the others following behind him, falling into step. In short time, Emily and Elliot flanked him while he could sense Kaidan and Ashley following a couple steps behind.

They walked out into the hall and down a flight of stairs before hitting the main hub of the Embassies. They conversed with the attendant on duty for a few minutes, being directed to Avina, the Presidium, for more information. Elliot just huffed while Emily raised an eyebrow in question. Ethan went ahead and walked over, he wanted to learn as much as he could. After a few minutes he had enough information about everything on the Presidium that he was sure he could write a brochure about the place.

After that they took a rapid transport to the Citadel Tower, arriving just in time to see two turians conversing as they all ascended the stairs.

One was wearing dark blue armor and a visor the other was wearing a dark blue suit trimmed in white with red highlights. Their conversation was rathe tense as the Ethan and the group approached.

"Saren's hiding something give me more time!" the armored turian said, his tone pleading.

"Stall the Council? Don't be ridiculous! You're investigation is over, Garrus," the other one said, leveling the first turian with a hard look. He then walked off and the one named Garrus noticed them all standing there. He walked over and addressed Ethan and his siblings.

"Commanders Shepard? Garrus Vakarian. I was the officer in charge of the C-Sec investigation into Saren."

Elliot was the first to respond. "Sounds like you really want to bring him down." An appreciative smirk was on his face.

Garrus crossed his arms and said, "I don't trust him. Something about him rubs me the wrong way. But he's a Spectre; everything he touches is classified. I can't find any hard evidence."

"I think the Council's ready for us, Commanders," Kaidan said suddenly. Ethan looked back at him for a second, wondering how in the hell he knew that, but then just let it slide. After all, Kaidan was probably right.

"Good luck. Maybe they'll listen to you." Garrus offered up a smile and Ethan smiled back, even though he wasn't sure how successful they'd be in their endeavor.

They all headed further into the tower, passing civilians milling about, or talking with one another. Ethan found his gaze kept trailing to the brightly glowing, salmon-pink colored, trees that dotted the area. They were rather breathtaking in his opinion. But his appreciation of the trees came to an end, when he spotted Anderson standing at the bottom of the stairs that lead up to where Citadel officials and others would hold meetings with the Council.

When they approached, Anderson motioned for just Ethan to follow him, saying, "The hearing's already started. The rest of you wait here." Ethan noticed the dark, hard look that came to Elliot's face and the angry, bitch-slapped look on Emily's. Clearly they didn't like this, but Ethan understood. He was the one who'd been down on Eden Prime. They hadn't. "Come on," Anderson insisted, turning and walking up the stairs. Ethan followed behind a sense of foreboding taking hold. Though why, he couldn't make heads or tails why.

As they stopped just behind Udina, Ethan took in the three Council members, a Turian, an Asari, and a Salarian. Each dressed impeccably and standing tall. Off to the left was a gigantic holoprojection of Saren. Ethan felt his blood turn to ice. Why was he involved?

"The Geth attack is some matter of concern. But there is nothing to indicate Saren was involved in anyway," the Asari Councilor was saying.

"The investigation by Citadel Security turned up no evidence to support your charge of treason," the Turian Councilor said, his voice just a tone away from angry.

Udina spoke up then, "An eyewitness saw him kill Nihlus in cold blood!"

This time the Salarian Councilor spoke. "We've read the Eden Prime reports, Ambassador. The testimony of one traumatized dockworker is hardly compelling proof."

And then Saren voiced his opinion and Ethan had to supress the urge to shudder.

"I resent these accusations. Nihlus was a fellow Spectre. And a friend."

"That just let you catch him off guard!" Anderson voiced loudly.

Saren's projection looked downward and from what Ethan could tell, sneered at Anderson. "Captain Anderson. You always seem involved when humanity makes false charges against me." He then looked at Ethan, his eyes piercing and cold. "And this must be your protégé, Commander Shepard. The one who let the beacon get destroyed."

With those cold eyes gazing at him so intently and the smug tone of his voice Ethan felt his blood begin to boil. "You're the one who destroyed the beacon. Then you tried to cover it up."

"Shift the blame to cover your own failures, just like Captain Anderson. He's taught you well." Saren then turned his gaze towards the Council and said, "But what can you expect from a human?"

That made Ethan angry, something he rarely did, but he wasn't about to put up with this. He took a note from his older siblings and deciding that he'd be a little rough and mouthy.

"Saren despises humanity. That's why he attacked Eden Prime!"

Saren looked back at Ethan with a withering look. "Your species needs to learn its place, Shepard. You're not ready to join the Council. You're not even ready to join the Spectres!"

This time it was Udina who spouted off, "He has no right to say that! It's not his decision!"

The Asari Councilor spoke up and looked at Saren, saying, "Shepard's admission into the Spectres is not the purpose of this meeting."

Saren responded with, "This meeting has no purpose. The humans are wasting your time, Councilor. And mine."

The next words that left Ethan's mouth probably would have made Elliot really proud. "Saren's hiding behind his position as a Spectre. You need to open your eyes!"

The Salarian Councilor responded with, "What we need is evidence. So far, we have seen nothing."

Anderson spoke up then, mentioning Ethan's vision. The one he'd had while on Eden Prime and had interacted with the beacon.

Saren looked to the Council and inquired, "Are we allowing dreams into evidence now? How can I defend myself against this kind of testimony?"  
"I agree. Our judgment must be based on facts and evidence, not wild imaginings and reckless speculation," the Turian Councilor voiced.

"Do you have anything else to add, Commander Shepard?" the Salarian Councilor asked.

Ethan just shook his head in disgust. "You've already made your decision. I won't waste my breath."

The Councilors took a few moments to converse and then the Asari Councilor said, "The Council has found no evidence of any connection between Saren and the Geth. Ambassador, your petition to have him disbarred from the Spectres is denied."

"I'm glad to see justice was served," Saren said before his holoprojection flickered away.

"This meeting is adjourned."

With that Ethan and Anderson both turned and walked away. Ethan was hot and angry, but most of all he wasn't sure what to do next. After they'd regrouped with Elliot, Emily, Kaidan, and Ashley, Anderson gave them a run down of how everything went. Elliot looked pissed while Emily just frowned a worried look creasing her brow. Kaidan looked thoughtful if a bit peturbed. Ashley looked disgusted and ready to hit something.

Then Udina walked over and berated Anderson for a moment before getting down to a plan of sorts. Someway to expose him. Kaidan mentioned Garrus, the C-Sec officer who'd been arguing with the executor.

"That's right!" Ashley added. "He was asking for more time to finish his report. Seems like he was close to finding something on Saren."

Elliot spoke then, "Any idea where we can find him?"

Udina mentioned a man named Harkin, a contact of his in C-Sec. Anderson didn't like it, saying Harkin had been suspended for drinking on the job last month and they shouldn't waste their time on the likes of him. Udina leveled Anderson with a hard look and said that the Commanders and their squad would handle it and that he didn't want the Council using Anderson's past with Saren as an excuse to ignore anything that might come up.

Ethan didn't like that and was going to say something, when Emily beat him to it. Her soft soprano sounding piercing and sharp as she spoke

"You can't just cut Captain Anderson out of this investigation!"

But Anderson agreed with Udina. Udina nodded and walked off, saying he had to finish some reports, but wanted Anderson to meet up with him later.

Anderson mentioned where they could find Harkin. Some dingy place called Chora's Den down in the Wards. While no one liked it, Anderson said it couldn't hurt to talk to him, but to take everything with a grain of salt.

Now that that was out of the way, Ethan wanted to know more about this past that Anderson seemed to have with Saren. The soft timber of his baritone broke the awkward silence that had fallen.

"You and Saren have a history. What happened?"

And the silence suddenly became even more awkward as the group waited for Anderson to respond as he closed his eyes and ran a hand over his face. Sighing at last, the Captain spoke.

"About twenty years ago, I was part of a mission in the Skyllian Verge. I was working with Saren to find and remove a known terrorist threat. Saren eliminated his target. But a lot of people died along the way. Innocent people. And the offical records just covered it all up."

Anderson had begun to pace a bit as he talked, but now he stopped, clasping his hands behind his back and looked at the Commanders. Specifically Ethan.

"I saw how he operates. No conscience. No hesitation. He'd kill a thousand innocent civilians to end a war without a second thought."

Ethan felt his brother tense at his side and expected Elliot to answer. But Emily was the one to answer, her voice conveying disgust and anger. And Ethan mentally agreed with her.

"Killing innocents doesn't end wars. It causes them."

Anderson nodded in agreement. "I know how the world works. Sometimes you're forced to make unpleasant decisions. But only if there's no other way. Saren doesn't even look for another option. He's twisted, broken. He likes the violence, the killing. And he knows how to cover his tracks."

Ethan mulled over what Anderson said as Elliot responded with his own retort and saying that they would find anything and everything to take Saren down. Starting with Harkin.

"Good luck," Anderson said, bringing Ethan out of his inner thoughts, "I'll be over in the Ambassor's office if you need anything else." The Captain walked away and all five members conversed for a few seconds before they eventually got on their way to the Wards.

Ethan could only wonder what they'd find once they got to their destination.


End file.
